You have grown so much in this past year. You received your patriarchal blessing by Patriarch Konold. The blessing was a true testament that Heavenly Father knows and loves you well. You were called to be the first assistant in the Priests quorum and you have been an incredible leader- attending youth activities and leading/facilitating firesides/youth councils. Dad and I have loved watching you in this calling. You are still deciding about a mission. You do have a testimony of the gospel, but a mission has always seemed a lot for you and though we believe you’d make an awesome missionary- we want you to go only if you want to go. This year you have applied to all sorts of colleges- a few in California and a few in Utah. You were accepted at Utah State University, Weber and Cal State Monterrey Bay. You are waiting to hear back from a few other universities. You are also considering junior college for this first year. This big decision, along with the decision of what you’d like to study for your future career has definitely been weighing on your mind. I’m proud of how independent you’ve been in this whole process. I’ve done very little in the way of helping you apply. I know that whatever you decide to do, you will be successful! I have the tendency to want to give too much advice for these big decisions, but ultimately, I trust you!
This year you have continued to play soccer for Coach Conner at Force. You have a job at Extended School Services, working with the kids after school until 5:30. These kids LOVE you and you enjoy your job very much. Your boss loves you too. For Christmas and all throughout the year, it’s so cute to see pictures and gifts and cards for “Mr. Dane”. Along with work, you spend most of your time with your girlfriend Kenzie Latkar. You two are very close friends and come up with all sorts of ways to have fun from various art projects, to legos, to watching sunsets, to visiting museums, to cooking and thrift shopping. I could go on. It’s been almost a year of dating and you are a perfect gentlemen and a kind boyfriend. Our whole family loves Kenzie- which is also a perk!
Favorite things: You love Coco our dog, you just got a fish from Kenzie for Christmas and you love researching how to make the perfect environment for your new fish. You love teriyaki noodles and Panda Express. You love soccer and fishing and yogurt with granola. You love to cook and tell jokes and be with your friends. You are so funny, so kind and sensitive to others, you love to serve and help people, you are very smart and talented at everything you do. Extremely athletic and good with people and especially kids. You are a deep thinker and a good friend to everyone.
This past year our travels included: Brianhead for snowboarding with the Stevens family, Las Vegas for soccer, New York City for Spring break, Lake Tahoe for High Adventure, Rexburg, Idaho for Adam’s graduation, the Western Caribbean for our family vacation with Grammy, Papa and the Stevens, Pismo beach with the Paces, and Seattle for Christmas! It’s been an incredible year in so many ways, but it’s flown by so fast. I can’t wait to see what life has in store for you and what amazing things you’ll accomplish as you continue to grow. Watch out world!
